[Stars: Upon use, you become more noticeable to others and leave a deeper impression.]
"!"
Yoshio brushed past Rukia. Outwardly, he kept a blank expression and walked on, but inside, waves surged.
Damn!
I have to get that ability!
It may seem limited in use, but no ability could be more suited to Yoshio!
The deeper the impression you leave on others, doesn't that mean it's easier to gain their favor?
For someone who powers up by increasing others' favorability, what ability could be stronger than one that makes it easier to gain favor?
None!
That Rukia has this ability…
The name "Stars" makes sense to Yoshio. After all, Renji's Souls Ability is ["Star Chaser,"] so Rukia is the star Renji chases.
Even so, [Stars] still surprised Yoshio. But thinking it over, Rukia indeed fits that trait.
However, although he wanted Rukia's Souls Ability, now wasn't the time.
Once Rukia joined the Gotei 13, he'd have plenty of time to raise her favorability.
Yoshio continued toward the Tsunayashiro estate. Upon arriving at the gate, a servant was already waiting for him.
Yoshio said little and simply handed over the intel he had gathered.
The servant took the documents and said softly, "Lieutenant Yoshio, this is the reward for your assignment."
Yoshio raised an eyebrow. He hadn't expected payment for this task.
Well now—very nice, very nice.
He couldn't help but chuckle, then took a pouch of soul coins from the servant.
"Please thank your clan on my behalf. If you have similar tasks next time, you can come to me again."
Yoshio was in a good mood. He'd spent over a month in the Human World, gained a Souls Ability from Sōken, and now received a substantial reward upon returning.
People say the Tsunayashiro are despicable, but they seemed quite sensible to him.
Though he'd helped them for quite a while without meeting a single family member, which felt a bit dismissive, Yoshio wasn't the type to fuss over such things.
Especially since the Tsunayashiro servants were very polite. The clan's core members might be arrogant, but their servants were humble—after all, etiquette is expected of servants in the Tsunayashiro household.
Not having to interact with the Tsunayashiro's main members suited Yoshio just fine.
He took the money and left. After walking about a hundred meters, he counted the reward: a full three million!
Good lord—three million!
Worthy of the head of the Five Great Noble Families—such generosity moves the heart.
Consider this: a newly appointed captain's monthly salary is only about two million.
Of course, a captain's salary rises with seniority. A millennium-old captain like Retsu Unohana must be drawing a staggering pay!
No wonder Shunsui had Unohana die after he took office—perhaps the Soul Society's finances were so tight they couldn't make payroll, so the veterans had to be sent off to die.
Heh…
Yoshio cracked a joke to himself and headed home in high spirits.
He didn't return to the Fifth Division immediately, deciding to wait another three days.
He'd pretend he was still in the Human World, then take a few days' rest in the Soul Society before reporting back.
For these three days, he planned to train Quincy techniques.
He didn't even set foot outside during those three days.
Activating the abilities ["Quincy Heir"] and ["Child of Kirin,"] he used those three days to successfully train in Quincy power.
The biggest difference between Quincies and Shinigami is that Shinigami absorb reishi into their souls, strengthening and empowering them to increase combat power.
That includes Zanpakutō, which are also driven by the spiritual force within the soul.
Quincies are different. While they also possess spiritual power, their main fighting method is manipulating external reishi to form reishi weapons.
Now, through power, Yoshio had gained the Quincy's capabilities. Though he'd trained for only three days, he'd completed a basic mastery of controlling external reishi.
He could now form basic reishi-grade weapons. If he claimed to be a Quincy right now, no one would likely doubt him.
Only after the ["Quincy Heir"] ability went on cooldown did Yoshio emerge from his house.
He had permanently acquired ["Child of Kirin,"] which he could reuse after a day, but ["Quincy Heir"] wasn't ready yet.
Leaving home, Yoshio finally returned to the Fifth Division.
…
"Captain Aizen, I'm back."
In the Fifth Division office, Yoshio greeted Aizen with a smile.
The captain, who was processing paperwork, didn't even look up—he just pushed a stack of files aside.
Puzzled, Yoshio listened as Aizen said, "These are all the administrative tasks you neglected over the past month. Handle them first."
"No way, Captain Aizen." Yoshio's face darkened at once, and he said bitterly, "I was out on assignment. Do I still have to handle squad business during that time?"
"You were out on assignment—who can prove it?"
"Words alone can't be dismissed," Yoshio insisted.
"You know there's no record in the squad," Aizen finally looked up, smiling faintly.
"…" Yoshio fell silent.
"All right, higher-ranking officers always win," he sighed.
He took the files and was about to return to his office.
Aizen spoke again. "Did you make contact with Kisuke Urahara?"
Yoshio stopped, a bit annoyed. "You already know—why ask?"
"Some things need to come from you."
"Yeah, I met him," Yoshio said. "But I didn't tell him anything. I just asked him for a gigai to move around in. Sigh, I forgot to bring one when I left—my mistake."
"I see. Next time you go to the Human World, I'll prepare a gigai for you, Yoshio-Kun." Aizen pushed up his glasses.
That was it?
Seeing Aizen had nothing more to say, Yoshio hurried off with the paperwork.
For now, things were still tense under Aizen's watchful eye.
He put the files in his office but didn't rush to process them. Instead, he first greeted the squad members.
After boosting the squad's favorability, he sat in his office, staring at the incomprehensible documents, sweating bullets.
He prayed silently. He'd been just an ordinary squad member before—at most a brief Ninth Seat. How could he be expected to handle an entire division and all the administrative affairs in its jurisdiction?
He didn't understand half of it!
Forget it—take it slow.
With a deadened heart, Yoshio stared at the words on the page. When the Fifth Division closed for the day, he bolted out the door.